I'm Nobody! Who Are You? Summary

Emily Dickinson’s short poem beginning “I’m Nobody! Who are you?” is typical of her work in many ways. It is brief; it is untitled; it is whimsical and thought-provoking; and it also displays her characteristic disregard for conventional punctuation and sentence structure (or “syntax”). The poem not only addresses individuality and nonconformity but also exemplifies them in its content and style.

The poem begins, as so many of Dickinson’s poems do, with a paradox in the first line: “I’m Nobody!” To claim that one is a nobody reveals that one is a somebody, that one exists and has an independent identity, even if that personal identity is defined by an absence of social identity. The claim that one is nobody may suggest that one is disregarded by others, but it may also be a way of asserting one’s humility and freedom from narcissism or self-centeredness. Ironically, if the speaker feels that she is “Nobody” because others ignore her, then her poem is a way of defying that kind of treatment—a way of making sure that she is indeed noticed. In the very act of saying “I am Nobody,” she calls herself to our attention.

The second half of line 1 asks, “Who are you?” Although the speaker is ignored or humble, or both, she is not unfriendly. She immediately reaches out to the unnamed “you,” a reference perhaps to the reader. It is as if the speaker were trying to establish a dialogue with another person who can never respond. Thus, paradoxically, her attempt to communicate has the effect of emphasizing her isolation. The whole first stanza can be read as an attempt by the speaker to break free of the isolation, the sense of non-importance, the sense of being a “Nobody” that has been imposed upon her.

In the second and third lines, the speaker suggests that if “you” are also considered (or consider yourself) a “Nobody,” then a mutual lack of conventional identity is the basis for a possible friendship. Again, since there is no way for “you” to respond to the speaker’s question, the speaker is, in a...

(The entire section is 859 words.)

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